Timing device

ABSTRACT

A watch includes an alarm actuated once every 24 hours to give a warning signal to the wearer. The alarm can be actuated by a wheel which makes one revolution per 24 hours, and is axially displaced at a certain adjustable position.

United States Patent 1191 Safir et al.

TIMING DEVICE Inventors: Edward Safir, 28, Carlton Ave.,

Clayton Le Woods near Chorley, England; Hans Jenny, Eigerw. 2A, 2543 Lengnau, Switzerland Filed: June 1, 1973 Appl. No.: 366,206

US. Cl. 58/17, 58/57.5 Int. Cl. G04b 23/08, G04b 23/12 Field of Search 58/19 R, 19 A, 19 B, 19 C,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 12/1931 Arden 58/19 R 1 1 Oct. 1, 1974 1,860,159 S/1932 Porter 58/19 R X 1,932,774 10/1933 Fowler 513/19 R X 1,974,409 9/1934 Brower 513/19 R 2,958,996 11/1960 Trick 513/575 3,517,499 6/1970 Keane, Jr. et a1 58/17 3,596,460 8/1971 58/57.5 X 3,611,702 10/1971 Spadini 58/57.5 X

Primary Examiner-George H. Miller, Jr. Attorney, Agent, or FirmBacon & Thomas 5 7 ABSTRACT A watch includes an alarm actuated once every 24 hours to give a warning signal to the wearer. The alarm can be actuated by a wheel which makes one revolution per 24 hours, and is axially displaced at a certain adjustable position.

1 Claim, 2 Drawing Figures TIMING DEVICE The present invention concerns timing devices to be worn by people.

Various timing devices with alarms are known, for example divers wrist watches with an alrm for signifying that a dive duration is about to end. However, with these watches the alarm has to be set by the diver shortly before each dive. In these and other known alarm watches for everyday use, the maximum period before the alarm is given is 12 hours. and it is necessary for the user to set the alarm within this period.

These known alarm watches are therefore not adequate when it is required to give a regular, daily warning signal, for example to persons who have to take medicaments daily, or to users of birth control pills.

According to the invention, there is therefore provided a timing device to be worn by a person, including a time display, an alarm, and means for actuating the alarm to give an alarm signal to the wearer once each 24 hours.

By having a timing device in the style of a wrist watch, piece of pendant jewelley, or pocket watch, it can be ensured that the wearer cannot miss the alarm because of temporary absence from the locality of the timing device. By having the alarm set automatically on a self-winding or battery-driven watch, it is possible to ensure that the setting of the alarm is not overlooked.

The appearance of the timing device is preferably the same as that of a conventional watch with a time display in the form of a 12-hour dial or digital display, which serves as a check that the device has been wound or is going. The alarm signal can be a discreet buzzing or ringing, for example, or a flag or light showing on the dial, or even vibrations produced by a soundless vibrator. It is preferred that the alarm should be adjustable to different times to suit the wearer or the occasion.

In a preferred embodiment, said actuating means comprise coaxial first and second wheels mounted for a limited axial movement relative to one another,

means for axially biasing the first and second wheels together, means for rotating the first wheel by one revolution each 24 hours, means for setting the second wheel at a desired angular position, and a plurality of recesses and projections on the first and second wheels, said recesses and projections cooperating to relatively axially move the first and second wheels apart to trigger that alarm when the first and second wheels have a certain relative angular alignment once for each rotation of the first wheel.

An embodiment of the invention will now be particularly described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings, in which:

' FIG. 1 is a partly cut-away plan view of a watch according to the invention, with the dial and hands removed; and

F IG. 2 is a cross-section taken along line lIIl FIG. 1, with the hands shown schematically.

The watch shown comprises a bottom or pillar plate on which is mounted a conventional coaxial rotatable pipe assembly consisting of a cannon pinion 12, an hours pipe 16 and a central arbor 18, respectively carrying a minutes hand 13, an hours hand 17 and a seconds hand 19. Hands 13, 17 and 19 form, with a 12- hour dial, not shown, a conventional time display. The pipe assembly is driven, in a known manner, by a motion work or going train including a minutes pinion 14 fixed for rotation with a toothed wheel 11, pinion l4 meshing with an hours wheel 15 integral with pipe 16, and wheel 11 meshing with cannon pinion 12.

The watch also includes an alarm (not shown) and a mechanism mounted between bottom plate 10 and a top plate 20 for actuating the alarm. This mechanism comprises a pinion 21, coaxial with a force-fitted in pinion l4, meshing with a toothed wheel 22 which is freely rotatably mounted on pipe 16. The ratio of pinion 21 and wheel 22 is such that during normal running of the watch, controlled by an escapement mechanism (not shown), wheel 22 makes one revolution each 24 hours. The end of the pipe of wheel 22 abuts against wheel 15 of pipe 16, and wheels 22 and 15 are free for a limited axial movement together along cannon pinion 12.

A trigger 23 of the alarm presses against an underside of wheel 15 to keep wheels 15 and 22 in an uppermost position. Wheel 22 includes three upwardly-directed punched-out projections 24, disposed at different distances from the centre of the wheel and angularly staggered from one another. Three openings 25 adapted to cooperate with respective projections 24 are provided in a wheel 26 disposed coaxially about the pipe assembly. The angular position of wheel 26 may be set by means of the winding crown (not shown) of the watch by means of an intermediate pinion 27. A pipe 28 of wheel 26 carries a hand 29, cooperating with a supplementary dial or graduation of 24 hours, and wheel 26 also has a crown or shoulder 30 disposed in a circular opening of a plate 31 which is fixed, by means of two blocks 32, onto the bottom plate 10. Two tongues 33 are cut out and embossed in plate 31, in a manner to bear against wheel 26 to allow rotation thereof against friction.

The described alarm actuating mechanism operates as follows. The user, by acting on the winding crown. sets the wheel 26 to a desired angular position, corresponding to a desired setting of hand 29 shown on the 24 hour graduations.

When the wheel 22, which makes one rotation per 24 hours, comes to a position in which projections'24 are in alignment with the openings 25 of wheel 26, which occurs only once each 24 hours, wheels 22 and 15 are lifted up by trigger 23 and the alarm is actuated.

The desired duration of the alarm signal can be chosen by selecting the dimensions of projections 24 and openings 25.

In an alternative embodiment, the wheel 22 could be replaced by a wheel rotating once every 12 hours, and a mechanism could be provided for triggering the alarm once for each two revolutions of the wheel.

The alarm is preferably of a type which does not require to be separately rewound by the user after each alarm signal, for example of a type which is automatically wound in an automatic mechanical watch, or which is wound with the mainspring in a manually wound watch. The invention can also be applied to electronic watches.

What we claim is:

1. A timing device to be worn by a person, including a 12 hour time display and operating mechanism therefor, an alarm, and means for actuating the alarm to give an alarm signal to the wearer once each 24 hours, said actuating means comprising: coaxial first and second wheels mounted for a limited axial movement relative movement of the first and second wheels toward each other to permit movement of the trigger to activate the alarm when the first and second wheels have a certain relative angular alignment once for each rotation of the first wheel. 

1. A timing device to be worn by a person, including a 12 hour time display and operating mechanism therefor, an alarm, and means for actuating the alarm to give an alarm signal to the wearer once each 24 hours, said actuating means comprising: coaxial first and second wheels mounted for a limited axial movement relative to one another, alarm trigger means axially biasing the first and second wheels toward each other, means for rotating the first wheel at the rate of one revolution in 24 hours, means for setting the second wheel at a desired angular position, and a plurality of recesses and projections on the first and second wheels, said recesses and projections cooperating To permit relative axial movement of the first and second wheels toward each other to permit movement of the trigger to activate the alarm when the first and second wheels have a certain relative angular alignment once for each rotation of the first wheel. 